Fear Of Darkness A serial novel by Joe Lake.

So far: Julie’s husband has had an accident, after which he disappears. At the police station the next morning, in the two-way mirror over the counter, Julie sees the door open by itself and when she looks, a young couple enter. “Vampires,” she thinks but is told that it is a trick of the light. Next, the campervan is back at Cooee and she wakes to find her husband in bed with her and notices two marks on her neck when she takes a dream-like excursion through the universe.)

But she is here in her campervan at Cooee beach with her husband still asleep beside her. She sits up in bed and stares at the ceiling and then she decides to ring her sister in Melbourne. She picks up the mobile telephone and speed dials. “Rosemary? It’s me, Julie. How are you? All right? Yes, I’m fine. The reason I ring is to ask you something. Do you know me as a stable person, I mean, am I normal? Yes, yes, I know you think so. What I want to ask you is: Some peculiar things have been happening to us lately - like a dream. We’ve had visitors who may have drugged us and I’ve lost touch with reality. At first we thought they were religious, but then, later, I woke up and I forgot who I was. I sat in the kitchen and nothing came into my head. It was like waking from an anaesthetic. I felt light-headed. When Bob had his operation, afterwards, when he came to, he didn’t recognise me, only later when his eyes cleared. Could they have put something into our drinks? What do you think? I’m not sure. Perhaps they tried to make us relax. The fact is, Rosy, I remember nothing, not a thing. I had a kind of experience where I floated and became a huge being as I engulfed the universe but that was just an illusion. Sometimes I feel like I’ve created everything I stand for. Of course, I stand for nothing these days now that we are retired and Bob takes care of the bills and any problems that arise. He’s the creator of my destiny - not, I think. All these problems began, sis, when someone tried to frighten us in the park and then our van was rocked which turned out to be a playful kind of introduction to the neighbours. Then Bob disappeared and later I saw people who had no reflection in a mirror and I tried to tell the police but they said that it was a trick of the light. Ever since then I’ve been light-headed and then, suddenly, from nowhere, Bob was back. He’s asleep right next to me. What? You want us to come to Melbourne? We can’t, especially now that we’ve made such good friends here in Burnie. Why don’t you come over here and see us? There’s always a spare bunk in the Winnebago where you can sleep. We’d pick you up in Devonport from the ferry and you can stay with us and help me straighten out this mess that I seem to be in. I can’t do it by myself, sis. Please!” They exchanged some more pleasantries and then she disconnected the mobile.

(To be continued next month)